Who am I now?  Now, I can say that I am a renovated person with a new perspective of life. Sharing with people from around the world has made me more flexible and conscious about cultural differences and how I can be adapted. TEA fellows, host families, partners, teachers, and every single person with a cultural background, all with a big heart with high sensitivity and willingness to help us in everything we needed.  They all made me feel at home. They celebrated and enjoyed my birthday party in the best Latin American style with warm wishes in every language while dancing Salsa in Merengue music. These memories were full of fun!

The experiences with high-quality professionals at MSU and Chief Joseph Middle School have given me the opportunity to think about my job in a classroom in a deep way. I’ve gotten the expertise to positively transform my teaching, with lots of new and effective strategies to apply not only in the classroom, but also in my community.  Something marvelous happened when I received a beautiful farewell letter from a student in Chief Joseph, and made me think that “it doesn’t matter how much a teacher spent with you, what matters is how much impact they had on you.” It was one of my best weeks in life.

Meeting people everywhere in Bozeman, Billings, Belgrade, and West Yellowstone have encouraged me to use my English. I know it is not the best but I always say that it is better than it was in the beginning. My English proficiency level is now a little better and it is something that I am proud of. 

I have a new commitment of building a powerful and strong learning community of English teachers in my town to empower everyone and have effective English communication skills. Now, I’m working on that!

Yarinett Del Carmen Rojas Rodriguez – Fulbright to USA 2019